Two of Us

Craig is lying, shirtless, spread-eagle on the couch, watching the 2015 Goosebumps movie – which is, as tween movies go, not the absolute worst I will say. Craig is watching it because Jack is suddenly into tween entertainment, and he has watched this movie with Craig already at least ten times. Craig basically skipped all the baby media stuff and has leapt straight into terrible, unfunny young teenage sitcoms, which is odd but at least the boy aren’t fighting over what to watch.

Jack is not here of course – he and Liam spent an epic day yesterday flying to Dublin for their month long adventure. So I’m letting Craig watch his big brother’s favorite movie, at the end of a long fun day, our first day as just the two of us. *cue Will Smith song

Flash back to yesterday. No, let’s go the day before – last Thursday. My conflict check finally cleared, and I planned to give my notice on Friday. But my main partner I work with came into my office, sat down, and started to hand over a bunch of new cases – so I stopped him and just spit out my news all in a rush, so he would know to give them to someone else. He started shaking – he’s a sensitive soul, for a law partner, and he was very emotional (hurt, not angry). It made it worse than if he’d been yelling at me. It was fairly raw and crummy. He told me that they’d just had a big meeting about me and I was on track for partner in a few years, etc. etc. I’d sensed that anyway, but it did make it sting a bit more.

Then he weirdly sent an email to everyone else, so I didn’t get to tell them myself. Meaning it was just a weird, WEIRD couple of days – I’m meeting each person individually anyway, but until I get through them all, it’s pretty intense and awkward as I’m not sure how everyone feels. (For the record, so far all of the women have been great – non-emotional, happy for me, understanding.)

After that crummy day, I kipped out of there early and headed to Target to load up on dollar spot items for the boys’ carry-on bags, as they were flying out the next morning. I bought some snacks, flash cards, Goosebumps books (they’ve been DESPERATE for them, since seeing this movie I’m currently watching for the frillionth time) – and I bought them each a cheap spiral bound lined notebook, and instructed them to write something in it every day about their days, so I can hear all about it when I get back. I also bought them each a book about New Orleans, so they can carry it to their after school program and show the Irish kids a little about where they live.

I came home loaded down with bags and packed each of their backpack carry ons full of treats, a surprise for the plane. We finalized all the last minute details, and then put the boys to bed. It was a long, fraught day, and Friday wasn’t much better. I really had the shakes in the morning – I told work I’d be late as I had to drop them at the airport, and the anxiety of their trip plus work-notice-weirdness was really working on my nerves. I hit the grocery to grab some milk and other things for Craig and I, and I was sort of listlessly weeping my way through the aisles. It was a rough morning, but I got the boys, their buzzcuts, their backpacks, and their three rolling carry on bags all to the airport on time. (They seriously were like Russian nesting doll triplets – same haircut, same rolling bag but in three different sizes, same backpacks. Cute.) I gave them kisses and hugs and off they went – landing in Ireland 8 am the next day Irish time (2 am our time – troopers).

I went straight to work from there and my emotional boss called with a quick assignment and seemed to have recovered, although he told me he can’t see me face to face yet, so we discussed it all by phone throughout the day. I met a few more individuals and shared my news (which they already knew, but hell this is the only way I know how to clear the air), and ended up billing a pretty decent day all told. Still I was READY TO GET OUTTA DODGE by 4:30 pm – I stuck it out til 5, and then left to pick up Craig. It takes an hour to drive about 6 miles across the city, the traffic at that time is so bad, and I picked up him at 5 minutes til 6 (daycare closes at 6). That’s going to be a pain for the next month . . . so much time in the car.

I’d made plans with some friends to help me through the anxious night, as I was basically holding up the boys’ plane with the power of my mind, and I needed some distraction. Craig and I dawdled on the levee near his school for half an hour before picking up the babysitter (who lived a block away from there), and then heading home. She’s a favorite, he knows her well, and I think it was easier for her to put him to bed alone for the first night, than it would have been for me. (All three boys share a room, basically a bunk room, and Craiggy does not like being alone in there.) I, meanwhile, threw on some skinny jeans and a black tank and headed out to meet some girlfriends at a stunning rooftop bar near downtown. We drank margaritas and talked for hours, but I headed home before 11, as fifteen bucks an hour for a sitter ain’t cheap. I called the babysitter a Lyft, then poured a glass of wine and fretted for a couple hours before finally falling asleep. The Prof sent a text shortly after 2 am (as instructed) telling me they were safe on land, and I slept better after that.

I woke at 6am to a distraught baby, sitting at the top of the stairs wailing for his Brudders and his Daddy and “I don’t want YOOOOUUUUU!!” He’s in a Daddy Only phase right now, but that’s not gonna last this month, I don’t reckon. I gathered him up and distracted him with something, and he watched a movie for an hour while I did some laundry and other futzing around the house, then I decided to put him in our Phil and Ted’s stroller and jog two miles to the park so he could play and I could get my run in. A tire was flat, so I got out the funky weird new bicycle pump the Prof just bought. It’s adjustable and works with the two main different kinds of valves, which meant it was complicated. I had no success blowing up that tire, and it took me wayyyy too long (like almost an hour) to figure out that I’m not dumb and unable to figure out the pump, but the tire wouldn’t inflate because there was a giant hole in the innertube.

I called a local bike shop to confirm they had the right size tube, then we drove over there to get it. I came home, changed the tire, and two hours after I’d had the idea, we were finally on the way to the park. (It was much hotter by that point, ERG, but I was not abandoning the plan.) Roundtrip I jogged 5 miles pushing my giant child, which is only going to make me faster in the long run but which is really annoying, especially on these terrible streets where hoisting him over giant potholes is a huge interruption in my jogging “flow.” He had a great time playing on the playground, and although it was warm, it’s definitely a mild June for New Orleans, so we didn’t overheat at all.

Unsurprisingly he fell asleep in the stroller on the return trip, so I put him in his bed and then did some stretching and lifting at home in front of Orange is the New Black, which is the show I’ve decided I’m going to binge while the Prof is out of town. I took a shower, picked around on the guitar, and overall enjoyed a Saturday where I didn’t have the pressure of catching up on billing, or entertaining two older boys. Craig eventually wandered downstairs and we got on our swimsuits and headed to the pool at the campus rec center – it’s an extremely small outdoor pool, but since most of the students are gone at this point, it usually isn’t too crowded and it’s always full of little families like mine. We didn’t have Craig’s floaties, meaning he tried very hard to drown himself numerous times (“I’m swimming mom!” SPLASH “Dear, that’s not swimming, that’s drowning, but nice try.”) We worked on learning how to swim and he had a great time jumping in and climbing out. Eventually the sun went behind a cloud and it got chilly, so we got some hot showers in the brand new renovated locker room (soooo swanky), then came home and made some pizzas for dinner. Now he’s watching a bit more tv, and I’m about to put him to bed. All in all it was a good day for the two of us, and I understand through text chats with the husband that the other three members of the family had a good day, too. The boys love their apartment and put all their stuff away, which is about all the update I got, but apparently they did great on the flight and are not at all phased by being in a different country.

So all is well. I’m trying not to think about two more weeks of awkward work awkwardness, but hopefully I’ll be able to fill it with transitioning my cases and other important work. Then I have a week off, and then I’ll start at the new firm, and then the boys will be back!

Time to put the littlest to bed. Hope your weekends are going well, too!